‘Battles are Decided by the Quartermasters’: US Army Modernizes Its Logistics

Rommel understood logistics(German Federal Archives)(click to view full) The importance of logistics has long been recognized by generals. German Field Marshall Edwin Rommel once commented: “Battles are decided by the quartermasters before the first shot is fired.” Apparently Rommel’s colleagues didn’t take his advice when preparing for the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. The German army had planned for a swift victory, similar to the victory against France, so there was inadequate planning to equip the German troops for a long drawn out conflict in a brutal winter environment. But that is what they got, and the invasion ultimately failed. To ensure its logistics system is up to the task of fighting overseas wars, the US Army Material Command (AMC) launched an effort called the Logistics Modernization Program (LMP). The program is designed to modernize systems and processes associated with managing the Army’s supply chain using a COTS-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) product developed by SAP. AMC recently awarded contract modifications to LMP prime contractor CSC in Falls Church, VA, worth $261 million to provide IT and logistics services under the LMP… Under the contract modifications announced Feb 1/10, CSC will provide services required to reengineer and modernize […]